In times of crisis, attention turns to the major member states, and the gaze on Paris and Berlin is a critical one. Too much turbulence, publicly displayed disagreements, too few joint initiatives: is the “Franco-German engine” up to the challenges of our time?

Franco-German tensions are set against a backdrop of major challenges affecting the very foundations of European security and the economy: the war in Ukraine, the energy crisis, customs chaos, and a highly turbulent transatlantic relationship. These challenges expose and reinforce existing vulnerabilities.

This EuroQuestions session aims to provide an analysis to identify upcoming Franco-German common positions and areas for joint action, to highlight the existing capacities on both sides of the Rhine to strengthen Europe’s standing, and to gauge both governments’ current willingness to make progress, as well as the margins for compromise that are acceptable and achievable in moving forward together.

Questions to answer:

Yann Wernert is a Policy Fellow at the Jacques Delors Centre in Berlin, the sister institute of the Institut Jacques Delors, where he works in particular on issues related to Franco-German relations. As a Franco-German national who has lived on both sides of the Rhine, he also brings a particularly valuable and insightful perspective on this relationship.